YOUR GUIDE TO THE TWIN CITIES
Michael Rand started RandBall with hopes that he could keep lies from conquering the minds of the weak. So far, he's only succeeded in using the word "redacted" a lot. He welcomes suggestions, news tips, links of pure genius, and pictures of pets in Halloween costumes here, though he already knows he will regret that last part.
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Weekend Links with Jon Marthaler: Twins and a lacrosse experience
Posted by: Michael Rand under Twins fans Updated: April 10, 2010 - 9:29 AM
Jon Marthaler bakes up a batch of delicious links just for you. Other times, you can find him here and here. (Iguana photo taken by us in Puerto Rico). Jon?
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If you're like me, you spent Friday night at an indoor lacrosse game. I went to the Swarm-Rochester game last night, the first time I'd ever seen one of their (its?) games in person, though I'd caught bits and pieces of the odd televised game before. [Proprietor note: We also attended the Swarm game last night, though separately from The Marth. Must have been the time to go]. Minnesota lost, 12-11; the Swarm closed a three-goal deficit late in the fourth quarter, but a Rochester goal with 1:46 to go doomed the home team to a loss. All in all, though, the games are certainly enjoyable. There are few breaks in play, and the goals are rare enough to still provide exhilaration but frequent enough to keep you hooked. Plus, there are a number of Swarm "superfans," all of which were highly enjoyable for various reasons.
There is a downside, though -- the team literally never stops playing rock music during play. Ever. They did occasionally cut over to a band in the upper deck, playing pep band classics, but these treasured moments were few and far between and quickly interrupted with more ear-splitting din. I'm not exactly a lacrosse purist, considering I spent most of the game saying, "Now, what just happened there?" but I could do with a bit of quiet, uninterrupted play now and again.
But that's not why you called. On with the links!
*J.J. Hardy got the winning hit in the eleventh inning last night, in Chicago. What better time, then, to look at Parker Hageman's breakdown of Hardy's swing -- and the differences between how it looked during his Milwaukee struggles, and how it looks now.
*It's the first week of the new baseball season -- which means it's time once again for the overly-early Twins season in review! (NOTE: This does qualify as a shameless plug, since I'm linking to something that I myself wrote. I apologize for being a self-aggrandizing ninny.)
*This is slightly old, but I just loved the Confessions of a Washed-Up Sportswriter, by Gary Cartwright, a short memoir of his life as a sportswriter. Key quote: "We survived on the assumption that no one read our paper anyhow."
*Cartwright's piece is also notable for appearances by his friend and fellow Fort Worth writer Dan Jenkins, who is sarcastically tweeting from The Masters this week, and deserves your time -- especially his 140-character Sergio Garcia impersonations. "I am now SEVEN behind the old man! Me, Sergio! Why? WHY?"
That'll do it for me. One more plug (sorry): Tonight, I'll be judging a contest at Rock Bottom Brewery to find the biggest Twins fan out of three finalists, with a free trip to next year's spring training on the line. It's at 5 pm, with free T-shirts and 2-for-1 drinks in the offing for attendees -- plus you can watch me, and all the finalists, make a fool out of ourselves.
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